Pisces – Physical – Throat: SMILING

Smiling in humans is a common expression that reflects pleasure or entertainment, but it can also be an involuntary expression of anxiety or various emotions such as anger and irony, among others. It is considered a normal reaction to certain stimuli, inherent to the individual (one is born with it) and independent of sociocultural aspects.  The smile is an important part of the physical stereotype and the perception of the individual and it is also important in the appreciation that others have of our appearance and personality, that is how the symmetry in the smile has an important role in the perception of beauty.

From a physiological point of view, a smile is a facial expression generated by flexing 17 muscles located around the mouth and eyes. According to the muscular function the smile is made in two stages, in the first one there is contraction of the upper lip and the nasolabial fold where the levator labii muscle, the zygomaticus major muscle and some upper fibers of the buccinator act. In the second or final stage there is a contraction of the periocular musculature to support the maximum elevation of the upper lip generating squinting eyes.

Another way to classify the smile is according to the degree of consciousness involved, the voluntary smile which may or may not be provoked by an emotion; the static one which is sustainable and reproducible and the involuntary one induced by joy is of dynamic character, it expresses authentic human emotion but cannot be sustained for long periods of time.

I invite everyone to read Matias’ post with the topic of the day.

Sonrisa

Finally, I encourage everyone to reflect on the concept of the day. No one else but us can re-signify our own being